Human Rights Watch: Police used ‘excessive force’ in Catalonia

The Spanish police used “excessive force” against the public during Catalonia’s independence referendum, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said Thursday.

“The police may well have had the law on their side to enforce a court order but it didn’t give them the right to use violence against peaceful protesters,” said Karthik Raj, HRW’s Western Europe researcher.

The Catalan health department estimated that 893 people were injured in clashes with the police, who were given orders to close polling stations and prevent the vote from taking place after the Constitutional Court deemed it illegal.

cinceur

cinceur

They weren’t protesters, or even voters. They were (a minority of) people physically preventing the police from carrying out a lawful order.

Posted on 10/12/17 | 12:36 PM CET

Vishnou

Where is HRW when women are raped and killed in so-called civilised countries? They are but concerned with making the buzz to their liking.

Posted on 10/12/17 | 12:49 PM CET

glasspix 1

All the Spanish/Catalan conflict needs is the “opinion” of a divisive and discredited far left political pressure group like the HRW. A few forces have contributed more to the deterioration of rights and security in the world than these shady and aggressive NGOs financed by the likes of Soros and Bloomberg.

Where was HRW and AI when scores of school girls were kidnapped by Boko Haram and when Yazidis were being raped and butchered by the ISIS?

Posted on 10/12/17 | 1:14 PM CET

Honest catalan

False. There are only 150 reports of bruises and two real injuried people. Seek and you will find absolutely no medical documentation about those false 900 victims. Separatist authorities gave orders to account for anxiety symptoms people as “wounded by oppressor forces.” Wake up: the supremacists lie. They are supremacists and they want the understanding of Europe presenting themselves as victims.

Posted on 10/12/17 | 1:40 PM CET

lafrx

893 people injured ?. Only 4 hospitalized, two of them serious: a heart attack and a rubber bullet impact on one eye. There is no image of the Catalan authorities visiting the nonexistent injured.

Posted on 10/12/17 | 1:42 PM CET

ANDREA SCHEEPMANS

Spain should be cicked out the european union for 6 months. If this is the real face of the european political elite than there is no future for the E.U. and the U.K. has a point.Thanks to creeps like Junker,Verhofstad etc.. they stole the (west) european soule of democratie and brotherhood.Respect for the U.K. who did the right thing : keeping a referendum in Schotland without obstructions and state violence.Franco is not far in Spain-Madrid.

Posted on 10/12/17 | 2:36 PM CET

ac

Blatant example of EU double standards in truly Orwellian ‘Animal farm’ spirit: “all animals are equal but some are more equal” – when EU Commissars praise violence in Spain and condemn safe and free of such violence Central European countries at the same time !

But imagine a mayhem that EU Commissars would start if government of Hungary, Czech Republic, Poland or Romania;
– took similar stance and tried to brutally crash opposition like Spanish government
or
– introduced and maintained indefinitely ‘state of emergency’ depriving citizens of their basic rights and undermined basic EU principles like France !
EU parliament debates, threats of sanctions, triggering article 7 of EU treaty and depriving of voice in the EU would follow immediately. Timmermans, Juncker, Macron would go mad on mainstream media every day on that.

But nothing like that happens in case of:
– Spain – trying to brutally crash democratic movement in Catalonia
– Germany – where Bundestag Scientific Office has just determined that Merkel’s decision to open borders to immigrants from all over the world had no legal grounds, where dieselgate and collusion among car producers has been tolerated for decades,
– France – with constantly extended ‘state of emergency’ depriving citizens of their basic rights which UN human rights experts and both Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch condemned recently, attacks on basic EU values or breaching 3% budget deficit rule against EU treaties for years.

Posted on 10/12/17 | 2:50 PM CET

arribaeg

Violence against Catalans are not a problem in Spain, Spaniards has this right to strike Catalans especially if they are breaking the law like going to vote if we have not authorized it.

Posted on 10/12/17 | 3:05 PM CET

arribaeg

And we don’t need any stupid foreign organization to decide if we can or not smash Catalans. We don’t need any stupid foreign organization to mediation or dialogue. With Catalans don’t talk only hard is our way.

Posted on 10/12/17 | 3:08 PM CET

Amazing

The fascist spanish need to now be kicked out of the eu.

There response was not even close to proportionate, it was a vicious violent attack on pensioners for trying to vote.

I see we have the pro-fascism brigade out in force on politico to lambast this report cause it does not fit their fascist narrative.

Priceless!!!!

Posted on 10/12/17 | 5:05 PM CET

Owch

It is likely more than 893 people and it is unsurprising. That is what happens in police operations of this magnitude. Especially if the police force isn’t well trained for the scenario and/or has us/them-thinking, which was the case this time.

That said, i think the politicians in Catalonia have been extremely irresponsible. They have made politics for the sake of politics itself, as opposed to politics for results. They have damaged their own cause and caused unnecessary tension within Spain.

Posted on 10/12/17 | 6:03 PM CET

Dave

@Kumar
“Where was HRW and AI when scores of school girls were kidnapped by Boko Haram and when Yazidis were being raped and butchered by the ISIS?”

@Vishnou
Where is HRW when women are raped and killed in so-called civilised countries?

Not sure literally stopping terrorism is there thing. Where were you btw? What a silly question.

Posted on 10/12/17 | 8:34 PM CET

Dave

*there>their

Posted on 10/12/17 | 8:39 PM CET

Ram Pisto

Totally fake news. Many reports of victimisation have been proved false.

Posted on 10/12/17 | 9:48 PM CET

Pam Risto

Totally real news. Many reports of victimisation have been proved true.

Posted on 10/13/17 | 1:34 AM CET

tere

@ arribaeg’s comments and the recent October 12 military parade in Spain underscore the lack of self-reflection that afflicts politicians and civil society in this country. Spaniards are fine with the genocide perpetrated by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabela (they celebrate it with a pompous military parade), they are fine with Franco’s mass killings (a Franco Foundation is still in existence), and they are fine with their government invading Catalonia and beating up old ladies and women (what a brave feat by those men in black hiding behind the anonymity of their masks) . No historical self-reflection, no compassion for whoever they destroy, and endless arrogance and ignorance. No wonder a large majority of Catalans want out of Spain. Who wants to belong to a country that lacks so much in humanity?

Posted on 10/14/17 | 3:58 AM CET

Joan Borrell

“Almost 900 people were injured in clashes with police during the disputed referendum”
Wot??
Just 4 (FOUR) people hospitalized. 2 of them with minor injuries.
Maybe they think it was the Bloody Sunday… Mon Dieu…

Posted on 10/14/17 | 6:45 PM CET

Joan Borrell

@tere
“No wonder a large majority of Catalans want out of Spain.”
Who told you that?
TV3?
The VAST MAJORITY of us want to be part of Spain and the EU.
Only a bunch of imbeciles think that we will be better out of the EU and Spanish markets where ALL our production goes, without a legal currency, without free of movement and with a hard border with… Spain